History

Logan is the county seat of Cache County, Utah. Logan is also the central community in the Cache Valley which extends into south-eastern Idaho. The Native American population, made mostly of bands of Shoshone, have lived in the region since prehistory. The first Europeans in the area were well known early trappers such as Peter Skene Ogden and Jim Bridger who explored the Logan River and surrounding regions as early as 1825.[2]

Brigham Young, the great colonizer, sent the first permanent European settlers into the Cache Valley on July 20, 1855. These early settlers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or Mormons) which is still the predominant religion to this day. Logan was first settled in April 1859 and named after the Logan River that flows through the city to this day.[3]

The establishment of the before mentioned church is responsible for two of the great architectural landmarks in Logan: the Logan LDS Temple and the Logan Tabernacle. Logan is also known as home to Utah State University, a land-grant university founded in 1888. Old Main, another architectural landmark in Logan, is perhaps the best known structure on the college campus.

The city celebrated its sesquicentennial in 2009. In 2010 the population totaled over 48,000, according to the census of that year.

Land and Property

Historical Overview

The recording of land on a local level began in 1885. Records back to that year are available by contacting the Cache County Recorder. Records before 1885 should have been recorded in a US federal land office; however, there was no federal land office in Utah until 1869. Records from about 1869 to 1885 and possibly earlier are housed in the National Archives, the closest branch of which is in Denver, Colorado.

Abstracts

Obituaries

The local history librarian at the Logan Library is happy to search for an obituary for you in most of the above newspaper titles. (Tip : Indexing of these papers is limited so give the librarian as much information as you can to make the search more fruitful.)

Societies and Groups

Vital Records

Settlers began to enter Cache County in 1859. Vital records from that time until civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths began may be found in alternative sources: newspapers, church records, family records, cemetery records, etc.

Birth and Death

Reliable birth and death records in Logan begin in 1898. In that year the Cache County Clerk began to keep a vital record register or ledger. This practice continued until 1905 when a state-wide registration of both births and deaths began.

Cache County Clerk. Birth and Death Records, 1898-1905". Salt Lake City, UT: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1966.FHL US/CAN Film 431094Logan Library Utah State Archives [call number Series 83781]

Marriage Records

Marriages were seen as a religious sacrament early in the history of Cache County. With the passage of the Edmund’s-Tucker Act, federal regulators outlawed polygamy, a common practice among pioneer members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormons). The act also mandated a territorial registration of marriages which began in 1887.